District Detroit start now slated for 2025, but exact timing unclear

Developers behind the stalled $1.5 billion District Detroit project updated residents on community investments negotiated in exchange for tax breaks but offered scant details on when construction will start for new housing, hotels, office and retail space long-promised to transform a key area of downtown.

Olympia Development of Michigan and New York-based The Related Cos. are collaborating on the second iteration of a massive real estate development plan for 10 buildings near entertainment venues and the incoming University of Michigan Center for Innovation. The order of construction was shuffled this year, with housing and hotel projects jumping ahead of a high-rise office tower outside Comerica Park that was originally slated to start construction in 2023. Meanwhile, the developers have worked to interview and hire Detroiters for trade jobs, support the opening of new businesses, complete a traffic study and coordinate infrastructure improvements with other government partners. 

Keith Bradford, president of Olympia Development, said a 261-unit apartment building at 2205 Cass and a 290-room hotel adjacent to Little Caesars Arena will be the first projects to break ground next year. When asked Tuesday whether the developers expect additional changes with the construction timeline, Bradford said “it’s impossible to predict the future.”

“That’s not meant to be a defensive comment in any way,” Bradford added. “What we’re trying to do is respond to the economy and right now we know Detroit needs hotel rooms to support the visitation we have, the success of sports teams and what the convention center is doing.”

After the meeting, Bradford acknowledged frustrations of residents who have mocked the project team for failing to show progress on a plan that was originally unveiled a decade ago. He couldn’t say when exactly in 2025 that ground will be broken at last.

“I moved to Detroit, and joined this community to be part of the revitalization of Detroit,” Bradford said. “I understand people are frustrated. I read the papers. I hear people’s frustrations. That doesn’t mean we’re not frustrated as well. We spent millions of dollars in pre-development getting ready for 2200 Woodward and now that’s sitting on a shelf waiting to be built.” 

Jon Wylie moved to downtown Detroit in 2017, the year Little Caesars Arena opened and the original target date set by Chris Ilitch for completing a new neighborhood around the venue. Wylie was excited to be part of District Detroit, but now he’s buying a place in Corktown and will move out before any of the projects are done. 

“All this stuff was coming, it was going to be done so soon,” Wylie said. “There’s so much more that could have been done … It does seem like people kind of called that out two years ago and said ‘why don’t you focus on the hotels around the building instead of the offices?’ It does seem like that should have been the thought two years ago to pivot towards that.”

Bradford said the office projects were delayed because banks are simply not offering loans on those kinds of developments. Some critics of the District Detroit plan had argued Detroit has little need for more office space as downtown employees adjusted to remote work after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There’s not a lot of investors out there looking to invest in office products when they can make money in a different way, much simpler, with much less risk,” Bradford said. 

A March 2025 deadline for at least one project to break ground is set by the $615 million tax incentive approved by the City Council in 2023. The agreement, which reimburses developers by using property taxes captured from the sites, could be terminated if the developer fails to make any steps toward building the sites within two years, or if no actions are taken at a specific site within five years.

Bradford said the goal is to finish the first residential project by fall 2027 in time to house incoming U-M students who will be studying at the adjacent academic building.

The U-M Center for Innovation broke ground in December 2023. Though it’s not technically part of District Detroit, developers have closely associated the building with their projects. Bradford said the $250 million academic center is expected to create a demand for new housing, a pipeline to train Detroiters for tech jobs and fuel downtown business growth.

The research and education center was seeded by a $100 million donation from Stephen Ross, chairman of Related Cos., and a land contribution from Olympia Development. Denise Ilitch, a member of the family behind Olympia Development, is also a U-M regent. 

The Little Caesars Arena hotel will be the second project to break ground in 2025, Bradford said. It was originally set to start construction in mid-2024. Bradford said negotiations are underway with a hotel management company.

Bradford said the development team is finding banks and investors that will help finance the projects. Interest rates and construction costs are the main economic factors developers are tracking.

An unnamed “anchor tenant” is still committed to filling a majority of the office space at the planned 2200 Woodward office tower, developers said. The site is owned by the Detroit-Wayne County Stadium Authority, and developers are negotiating a sale.

‘We’re spending money in the community’

The downtown mega-project received approval for nearly $800 million in state and local tax incentives last year. Council President Mary Sheffield was the lone “no” vote, arguing that stronger language was needed to ensure the developers follow through on commitments to support Detroit businesses and hire residents.

Much of Tuesday’s meeting was focused on community benefits provisions secured by residents who negotiated with the development team from 2022-2023. City Compliance Manager Jacob Jones said developers are on track for 37 out of 100 commitments – most of the lagging items are tied to construction. 

“We’re spending money in the community and unfortunately haven’t built anything,” Bradford said. “But realize we don’t get incentives until we build.” 

Bradford emphasized that tax breaks don’t kick in until the projects are completed.

Developers have hosted 860 visitors to an opportunity center opened last August on Woodward in a former Starbucks. The site has been opened for community organizations, City Council engagement meetings and Saturdays in the D learning programs – including a class that taught Detroit kids how to code. 

The opportunity center is being used to recruit Detroiters for construction jobs once projects break ground. Roughly 160 job offers have been extended thus far, developers said. 

Developers also pointed to the opening of new businesses and other coordinated projects within the same area of downtown, like Henry Street Apartments in Cass Corridor and The Residences @ 150 Bagley, formerly the United Artists building. 

Melody Martin, who has lived in downtown Detroit for more than a decade and saw her rent more than double for a one-bedroom apartment, is looking for new housing. But she said the “affordable units” at the 150 Bagley project are too expensive – a 1-bedroom apartment is listed at $1,322 per month. 

Martin, who is retired, said that’s roughly the same as she pays now. She already spends around 80% of her income on housing, far more than the recommended spend of 30%.

Other residents called attention to a lack of progress on pedestrian safety improvements. They referenced an October incident when a man was struck by a car and killed after leaving a Detroit Red Wings game. 

The Michigan Department of Transportation is installing a traffic signal at Woodward and Temple north of the arena and undergoing a planning project for the Woodward Corridor. One attendee said they’re excited about the potential of District Detroit, but the area is currently unsafe for pedestrians. 

The developers committed to creating a traffic management plan with the city, which would focus on pedestrian safety and the impacts of events- related traffic on nearby residents.